I bought a used bike recently for $20. So exciting! I have always liked riding, but when my bike got stolen a year ago I thought I couldn't justify the expense of getting another one.
Lately as I've been pedaling all over Mandarin I've been thinking about gears. This bike has 21 gears that you shift with your thumb. I've never had more than 10. (I know. I'm old.)
I like to exert a consistent force and effort when I ride. Not too much. Not too little. I want to get where I'm going, but I don't want to work so hard that I lose all the joy of the ride, or get so tired that I have to stop. As I go along I change the gears quite often... up one, down one, etc., in an effort to keep my effort consistent.
I noticed that even though I always pedal about the same speed with about the same effort, my bike speed changes dramatically. It is easy to feel good about my progress while I am zipping along, but when I am going slowly I felt inept and not very strong and not in shape. Does that make sense?
No.
When the terrain is flat and smooth I can put it up in a high gear, and each push of the pedal moves me a long way. However, when I encouter an incline or uneven terrain, or a strong headwind, i have to ratchet it down a few gears, sometimes to "1." I am still pedaling the same speed with the same effort, but going at a walking speed.
I began to realize that it was foolish to judge my fitness level or progress by the speed of my bike. It was actually meaningless. If I exert a decent effort for the whole trip, and don't tire out and quit, and don't go ridiculously slow, and enjoy myself, and get to my destination, why not be satisfied?
Life is a long bike ride.
Exert consistent effort, adjust the gears when the terrain gets difficult, and enjoy the ride. At times you will be in low gear and not seeming to make much progress. At times you will be zipping along with the wind behind your back. Either way, keep up consistent effort, not too much, not too little, don't worry about your speed, and with God's grace you will get where you need to be when you need to get there.
Amen.
Lately as I've been pedaling all over Mandarin I've been thinking about gears. This bike has 21 gears that you shift with your thumb. I've never had more than 10. (I know. I'm old.)
I like to exert a consistent force and effort when I ride. Not too much. Not too little. I want to get where I'm going, but I don't want to work so hard that I lose all the joy of the ride, or get so tired that I have to stop. As I go along I change the gears quite often... up one, down one, etc., in an effort to keep my effort consistent.
I noticed that even though I always pedal about the same speed with about the same effort, my bike speed changes dramatically. It is easy to feel good about my progress while I am zipping along, but when I am going slowly I felt inept and not very strong and not in shape. Does that make sense?
No.
When the terrain is flat and smooth I can put it up in a high gear, and each push of the pedal moves me a long way. However, when I encouter an incline or uneven terrain, or a strong headwind, i have to ratchet it down a few gears, sometimes to "1." I am still pedaling the same speed with the same effort, but going at a walking speed.
I began to realize that it was foolish to judge my fitness level or progress by the speed of my bike. It was actually meaningless. If I exert a decent effort for the whole trip, and don't tire out and quit, and don't go ridiculously slow, and enjoy myself, and get to my destination, why not be satisfied?
Life is a long bike ride.
Exert consistent effort, adjust the gears when the terrain gets difficult, and enjoy the ride. At times you will be in low gear and not seeming to make much progress. At times you will be zipping along with the wind behind your back. Either way, keep up consistent effort, not too much, not too little, don't worry about your speed, and with God's grace you will get where you need to be when you need to get there.
Amen.
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